teeth pictures, post extraction

Finally, I get my camera out of Nick's car, where it's been held hostage for the past month or so. First, the obligatory pre-everything-except-for-extraction photo of my nice big gummy smile (sometime I'll post one of a BIG smile - this one is pretty conservative).

Next, my amazing bite! The orthodontist, oral surgeon, and dentist kept talking about my open bite. Truthfully, I never really thought about it being really open until I took these pictures - and now I notice that the only teeth that touch in my mouth are on my right side, my back three (oops, now two) teeth. Odd.

I look a little tired (okay, a lot tired and slightly dramatic), but this is my biggest problem with my stupid mouth/jaw/bite/everything combined: My lips don't cover my teeth. So, if I'm not paying attention and I space out during the day, I get a slack-jawed, stupid look that's completely unattractive. Such as the picture to the left.

My lower jaw sans two teeth. The hope is that the Damon braces system will widen the lower arches enough that the extra step in my jaw surgery won't be necessary... Hence I said goodbye to two teeth, as the crowding is pretty insane. Also, my teeth lean too far inwards, which will be fixed first off.

My upper palate. Please ignore the multitude of cavities, as I'm pretty embarrassed of them. My teeth aren't too crowded, but my arch is very narrow. They'll widen this as much as they can with the damon braces like my lower jaw, but then they'll widen it during the main surgery as well. (Though, if it doesn't look like they will be able to get enough widening with the damon system, I'll have to do the SARPE thing - I'm crossing my fingers to avoid it!) My teeth on the top side really lean towards the inside of my mouth, as well, which should be fixed straight away.

Side profile with my lips relaxed (it's a bit weird from the shadows, but you can see how my lips don't even come close to touching, and how long my profile is from my nose to my chin.

Anyway, in closing, it all starts here! My jaw is still pretty sore, but I'm able to open it today. The weirdest thing is, is my lower teeth really hurt today - and in looking at them in the mirror, they're already becoming less crowded, and edging into the recently vacated space.